Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

[Κώστας Φ.]

Price: $2795 USD per pair.
Warranty: Three years parts and labor.

Φθηνό, σχετικά, Βηρύλλιο από την Usher με βοήθεια από τον Dr. D’Appolito στο σχεδιασμό του x-over. Οι εντυπώσεις θετικότατες.

Review Summary

Sound
"I’ve never heard a speaker this small go so deep. I’d swear the Be-718s were moderately sized floorstanders, not some pipsqueaks on stands." "However, to reach that deep, Usher has sacrificed sensitivity, because I had to throw quite a bit more amplifier power at the Be-718s than is usual for speakers of their size." "The midrange and highs…are ultra-clean and neither pushed forward nor recessed. In fact, this is as well-balanced a loudspeaker as I’ve ever heard."

Features
A two-way front-ported minimonitor that's part of Usher Audio's "more upscale" Dancer series. "The tweeter's dome is made from beryllium, "Be" in the periodic table of elements, and beryllium-dome tweeters are all the rage in many high-priced speakers nowadays because of the material's stiffness and light weight." "The Be-718 seems exceptionally solid, and it's heavy -- close to 40 pounds."

Use
"I suspect that the sensitivity is overstated, somewhere below 85dB. This doesn’t have anything to do with sound quality, but it does mean that you’ll need a sufficiently powerful amplifier in order to get the best from a pair of Be-718s." "Because of its thick frame, the grille is as sonically obtrusive as they come. Remove it for serious listening."

Value
"… as close to state-of-the-art sound as you can get from speakers that cost less than $3000."

Full Review: Soundstage.com
Mετρήσεις: Κλικ

 

[ΧΑΡΙΤΟΣ ΛΑΜΠΡΟΣ]

σχεδιαστικα φερνει αρκετα σε chario.

 

[Tidal__]

Oμορφο.
Τα Usher γενικα ειναι ηχεια που "παιζουν"....

 

[Nick Arvanitakis]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Λιγο ακριβο δεν ειναι για Usher?

 

[Gebreselassie]

Re: Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Λιγο ακριβο δεν ειναι για Usher?

:cool_4::cool_4:

 

[gbour]

Ερώτηση άσχετη με τα Usher, σχετική με το βυρήλιο:

Τι γίνεται αν ο θόλος (ή το dust cup) έχει βαθουλώματα και πάει κάποιος και το ρουφήξει; :crazy_3:

According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), beryllium and beryllium compounds are Category 1 carcinogens; they are carcinogenic to both animals and humans.[6] Chronic berylliosis is a pulmonary and systemic granulomatous disease caused by exposure to beryllium. Acute beryllium disease in the form of chemical pneumonitis was first reported in Europe in 1933 and in the United States in 1943.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beryllium#Health_effects

"I’ve been exposed to an alloy that contains only a small amount of beryllium. Is this hazardous?
Some commonly used alloys include beryllium copper (up to 4% beryllium), beryllium aluminum (20-60% beryllium), and beryllium nickel (0.275 to 7% beryllium)1. Studies have shown that alloys that contain beryllium can be just as hazardous as pure beryllium metal. A 1999 report summarized two cases of Cronic Beryllium Disease caused by copper alloy containing 2% beryllium 2. Other studies have shown that breathing even seemingly trivial amounts of beryllium can cause beryllium sensitization and chronic beryllium disease 3,4."

http://www.nationaljewish.org/disease-info/diseases/occ-med/beryllium/about/beryllium/about.aspx

Και από το manual του κατασκευαστή:

Never touch the tweeter!

:shock:

 

[Tidal__]

Γιατι ακριβο ρε παιδια?2200 Ευρος?
Μπορει να παιζουν και καλα, δεν ειναι κανα εξωφρενικο ποσο.
Εκτος αν εννοειται οτι ειναι κινεζικα (νομιζω).

 

[Nick Arvanitakis]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

το πιο πιθανο ειναι να παιζουν καλα
αλλα μαλλον ειναι κινεζικα και με 2000$ θα αγοραζα αυτα

http://www.revelspeakers.com/imagelibrary/index.asp?categoryID=8&productID=56

 

[Κώστας Φ.]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Από την Taiwan είναι η εταιρεία.

"Usher has been producing speakers in Taiwan for more than thirty years, and makes a number of specialized in-house drivers featuring Be beryllium ceramic diaphragms. These are created by heating beryllium formers to greater than 700 degrees, transforming them into brittle but extremely high-strength beryllium oxide. This ceramic’s enormous strength-to-weight ratio pushes the Be dome tweeter's transient response to an extraordinary level while minimizing distortion as no fabric-dome can claim."


Αυτό που ξέρω είναι πως το ίδιο ηχείο, αν το έβγαζε η Sonus Faber (τυχαίο παράδειγμα - βάλτε όποιο μεγάλο ευρωπαϊκό όνομα θέλετε εδώ) θα μας χρυσο-χρέωνε το όλο προϊόν και θα είχε και το σχετικό καπέλο στην τιμή για να εξαργυρώσει την συμμετοχή του D'Appolito.

A Word About Dr. Joseph D’Appolito

We are very happy to have Dr. Joseph D'Appolito as Usher’s technical consultant since early 2000. He provides guidance on all our speakers’ crossover designs. A world-renowned authority in audio and acoustics, he specializes in loudspeaker system design with credentials galore: BEE, SMEE, EE and Ph.D., degrees from RPI, MIT and the University of Massachusetts. As a member of the Audio Engineering Society, Dr. D'Appolito has published over 30 journal and conference papers. His most popular and influential brainchild has to be the MTM (midrange/tweeter/midrange vertical array) commonly known as the D'Appolito Configuration that’s used by dozens of manufacturers throughout the world.




Νίκο, προσωπικά τα κολλήματα τύπου ψάχνω το ταμπελάκι να δω τι λέει το "made in..." τα έχω ξεπεράσει. Αν είναι ποιοτικό και, φυσικά, παίζει καλά, με ενδιαφέρει. Η τιμή είναι ανάλογη φυσικά.

Να βάλω και πάλι ένα quote από κάποιο review του Δ. Σταματάκου (avmentor.gr) για ενισχυτή της Advance:

"To outsourcing στην Κίνα είναι πλέον κοινός τόπος για όλους τους κορυφαίους κατασκευαστές και δεν υπάρχει λόγος να παραμένει ταμπού στους "μικρούς" που τελικώς ίσως και να το έχουν περισσότερο ανάγκη... Και -για να μην ακουστούν τίποτε αίολα επιχειρήματα που βασίζονται σε λογικές "made in..." και άλλα παρόμοια κλισέ- σπεύδω να (ξανα)εξηγηθώ: δεν είναι το "πού" κατασκευάζεται μία συσκευή, αλλά το "πώς" που μας ενδιαφέρει. Ο Αγγλος κατασκευαστής είναι εξίσου ικανός να παράγει αηδίες με τον Κινέζο συνάδελφό του (και τις έχουμε δεί κατ' επανάληψιν από αμφότερους) και το αντίθετο: Ο Κινέζος μπορεί να κάνει θαύματα, όπως άλλωστε και Αγγλος. (και αυτά τα έχουμε δεί κατ΄επανάληψιν, άλλωστε). Αλλάξτε τα ονόματα των χωρών κατά το δοκούν στον παραπάνω συλλογισμό, και μην ασχοληθείτε ποτέ ξανά με την καταγωγή των μηχανών. Ασχοληθείτε, καλύτερα, με τις ίδιες τις μηχανές."

 

[Nick Arvanitakis]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Κωστη ,συμφωνω αλλα και παλι ακριβα ειναι:happy_4:

 

[Μιχαλης Σπερτος]

Re: Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Από την Taiwan είναι η εταιρεία.

Αρα ΔΕΝ ειναι αυτο που εννοουμε λεγοντας "Κινεζικα"
Το Κινεζικο ειναι συνωνημο με το πανηγυρτζιδικο, ή αλλοιως "της Κυριακης χαρα και της Δευτερας λυπη"

Αυτό που ξέρω είναι πως το ίδιο ηχείο, αν το έβγαζε η Sonus Faber (τυχαίο παράδειγμα - βάλτε όποιο μεγάλο ευρωπαϊκό όνομα θέλετε εδώ) θα μας χρυσο-χρέωνε το όλο προϊόν και θα είχε και το σχετικό καπέλο στην τιμή για να εξαργυρώσει την συμμετοχή του D'Appolito.


Νίκο, προσωπικά τα κολλήματα τύπου ψάχνω το ταμπελάκι να δω τι λέει το "made in..." τα έχω ξεπεράσει.
Λαθος σου κατα την γνωμη μου, διοτι το ...
Αν είναι ποιοτικό .. δεν ειναι ολοι σε θεση να το ξερουν και, φυσικά, παίζει καλά.... αυτο ΝΑΙ μπορει κανεις να το κρινει, μονο εαν καταφερει να το απομονωσει απο το δελεαρ της τιμης... με ενδιαφέρει. Η τιμή είναι ανάλογη φυσικά.

Να βάλω και πάλι ένα quote από κάποιο review του Δ. Σταματάκου (avmentor.gr) για ενισχυτή της Advance:

Κωστα να υποθεσω οτι συμφωνεις με αυτα ??

"To outsourcing ... το "φασόν" φαινεται οτι δεν ειναι πλεον αρκετα κομψος ορος στο συγχρονο μαρκετινγκ .... στην Κίνα είναι πλέον κοινός τόπος για όλους τους κορυφαίους κατασκευαστές και δεν υπάρχει λόγος να παραμένει ταμπού στους "μικρούς" που τελικώς ίσως και να το έχουν περισσότερο ανάγκη...

Κυριοι, οι μικροι, οσο ειναι μικροι, δεν μπορουν να παραγουν στον τριτο κοσμο. Δεν ειναι θεμα ΤΑΜΠΟΥ. Ετσι ειναι ρυθμισμενο το κολπο απο σας τους ιδιους.

Και -για να μην ακουστούν τίποτε αίολα επιχειρήματα που βασίζονται σε λογικές "made in..." και άλλα παρόμοια κλισέ-
σπεύδω να (ξανα)εξηγηθώ: δεν είναι το "πού" κατασκευάζεται μία συσκευή, αλλά το "πώς" που μας ενδιαφέρει.
Ο Αγγλος κατασκευαστής είναι εξίσου ικανός να παράγει αηδίες με τον Κινέζο συνάδελφό του (και τις έχουμε δεί κατ' επανάληψιν από αμφότερους) και το αντίθετο: Ο Κινέζος μπορεί να κάνει θαύματα, όπως άλλωστε και Αγγλος. (και αυτά τα έχουμε δεί κατ΄επανάληψιν, άλλωστε).

Το καλυτερο που μπορει να κανει ο Κινεζος (PRC) κατα την γνωμη μου, ειναι καλο φασον, ή καλη απομιμηση του Δυτικου κατασκευαστη, καθως ΔΕΝ του επιτρεπουν να παραγει τεχνολογια. Πολυ θα θελανε κατι τετοιο οι Κινεζοι αλλα δεν τους αφηνουνε οι Δυτικοι και Ιαπωνες. Ακομη και αν καποιοι Κινεζοι ξεφυγουν απο το επιπεδο του φασον, θα πρεπει να παραμενουν στα πλαισια του Δυτικοφρωνα και Δυτικοαναθρεμμενου, αλλοιως τους εφαγε η μαρμαγκα....
Αυτο που πρεπει καποια στιγμη να καταλαβει ο καθε περισπουδαστος αρθρογραφος, που πλασσαρει ανεπιφυλακτα τις προσταγες του Μαρκετινγκ, ειναι οτι, εαν καποτε οι μικροι αποκτησουν κωλο τα σκατα δεν θα εχουν αξια. Και μεχρι τοτε η ποιοτητα του κινεζικου καταναλωτικου προιοντος θα φτανει μεχρι το σημειο που θα οριζουν τα Δυτικα συμφεροντα
Ας αφησει λοιπον ο αρθρογραφος τα αιωλα επιχειρηματα γιατι φαινεται σαφως οτι η εποπτεια που εχει για το πως φτιαχνεται το καθετι ανα τον κοσμο εντοπιζεται στα γυαλιστερα προσπεκτους και στη γκλαμουρια των εκθεσεων, οπου μεταξυ τυρου και φρουτου, συζητιεται πως θα μας τα παρουν πιο εξυπνα. Για μενα τα παραπανω κλισε ειναι ενα μειγμα απο προσωπικες εικασιες, σαφως εναρμονισμενες με την τρεχουσα Μαρκετιστικη λογικη που σημερα φαινεται να λεει ΝΑΙ στην Κινα, οσο η υποθεση εχει εμπορικο συμφερον για τον μεγαλο Δυτικο κατασκευαστη. Να δουμε τι θα λενε οσοι εναρμονιζονται με την ηθικη αυτου του συστηματος, οταν καποτε οι Κινεζοι βγουνε απ' το αυγο τους, και παψουν να δουλευουν για μια χουφτα ρυζι.
Αλλα, αυτα τα εχουμε δει κατ' επαναληψιν αλλωστε ...

Αλλάξτε τα ονόματα των χωρών κατά το δοκούν στον παραπάνω συλλογισμό ... :mad_3: ... και μην ασχοληθείτε ποτέ ξανά με την καταγωγή των μηχανών. Ασχοληθείτε, καλύτερα, με τις ίδιες τις μηχανές.

Ιδου λοιπον η νεωτερη γραμμη του μαρκετινγκ, μετα το "πεταξτε τις οθονες CRT και αγοραστε LCD".

"

:smoking:

 

[Κώστας Φ.]

Απάντηση: Re: Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Αρα ΔΕΝ ειναι αυτο που εννοουμε λεγοντας "Κινεζικα"
Το Κινεζικο ειναι συνωνημο με το πανηγυρτζιδικο, ή αλλοιως "της Κυριακης χαρα και της Δευτερας λυπη"

Μιχάλη, δε διαφωνούμε στα βασικά. Όλη η διαφορά μας βρίσκεται στο παραπάνω quote, δηλαδή στο πως ορίζουμε το "κινέζικο". Η θέση μου αφορά προϊόντα όπως αυτά της Advance τα οποία έχουν καλή, σχετικά, ποιότητα κατασκευής με πολύ λογικές τιμές, προσφέροντας άριστο value for money, κάτι που δεν θα ήταν εφικτό αν δεν έκαναν το outsourcing στην Κίνα. Θυμάμαι πως έχεις το CDp της και είχες γράψει καλά λόγια για την απόδοσή του, δεδομένης και της τιμής του. Δεν θα ήταν ανόητο να σε "φρενάρει" το ότι είναι Made in China, ενώ σε καλύπτει σε όλους τους άλλους τομείς? Η Advance είναι βέβαια ένα μόνο παράδειγμα...

Δεν αναφέρομαι ούτε στον Κινέζο που πουλάει 300Β ενισχυτές με 300 ευρώ στο eBay ούτε και στον μεγάλο κατασκευστή που πάει στα "μουλωχτά" χωρίς να υπάρχει η ανάλογη μείωση της τιμής και, βεβαιώς, ούτε στον US ή EU-based κατασκευαστή που αγοράζει κινέζικα προϊόντα, αλλάζει το ταμπελάκι, κάνει και μικρές αλλαγές (στις καλύτερες περιπτώσεις) και τελικά το πουλάει για δικό του σε εξωφρενικές τιμές.

 

[Κώστας Φ.]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Να μη μιλήσουμε και για τις εγκαταστάσεις της IAG (που φτιάχνει Quad και Wharfedale μεταξύ άλλων)?... Όλοι οι συντάκτες περιοδικών που έχουν πάει (Stereophile, What HiFi κλπ) απλά έχουν πάθει πλάκα.. Δείτε τι έγραψε ο Wes Phillips μετά την επίσκεψή του:


Then I heard a table saw rip into some heavy timber. I turned in the other direction and my jaw dropped again. The IAG industrial park resembled a small city. How big is it? Well, what time is it now? IAG's official estimate is a million square feet of factory floor, but I walked through several newly completed, hangar-sized buildings and saw at least another five under construction—one of them six stories tall. The entire time I was there, trucks full of raw materials were trundling onto the site, some filled with supplies for the factory, but just as many toting concrete and rebar. I walked by a crew of masons beginning to construct a wall one day; the next morning, I watched a crew slapping paint on the completed and skim-coated finished product.

Then there were the 20 buildings that were fully operational. IAG claims its Shenzhen factory is one of the largest custom-designed electronics facilities in the world. I believe it. So forgive me if I disbelieve the million-square-foot figure, but that seems so yesterday.

IAG's manufacturing facilities are ISO 9001 certified, which means that they meet strict international standards for quality control and quality assurance. Everywhere I went within the plant, QC engineers were checking the output of that section's floor crew. That means that a part is made, and it's checked. That part gets incorporated into an assembly, and the assembly is checked. That assembly gets incorporated into a subassembly, and then that's checked—as is the final product. Everywhere I went in the plant, the noise of manufacture was accompanied by the electronic swoops and burbles of the quality-control crew's test gear.

One of the most impressive sights on my rounds, in fact, was the sample room, which contains a calibrated, second-generation reference sample of every driver IAG makes. ("Second-generation" means the first real product run after a prototype has been approved.) These are signed and dated by members of the R&D department, run by Steve Hewlett—IAG's chief of engineering and a longtime driver magician, formerly of Celestion—and random samples of each run are taken offline and compared to the reference samples to ensure consistency.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

As we walked (and walked and walked) to the first building on our tour, Steve Hewlett recited a few statistics. The 1500 employees are pretty evenly divided between the sexes, and that new six-story building we saw being erected was the future woodshop facility. And everything has been built without a mortgage or the burden of debt. The Changs put a lot of their money where their mouths are, and they bet it all on the future. That's thinking long-term.

IAG makes Wharfedale and Quad, but also Apogee lighting, Wharfedale Pro (mixers and DJ speakers), Airedale (loudspeakers aimed at the Japanese market), Leak (another classic British marque, currently producing primarily for the Asian market), and Quad Industrial (architectural speakers).

As we walked, I noticed a groundsman sweeping up debris and dumping it into a box labeled Vox Valve Reactor Amplifier. I took a photo of it—I've always been mad about the chimey AC-30—and Hewlett casually said, "We make those here. Would you like to see the assembly line?"

Of course I did. But jeez, you must be busy when you forget to mention an entire brand.

Clocks ticking slowly, dividing up the day
Properly speaking, the tour began in the tool-and-die works. If IAG's facility is about anything, it's about vertical integration, which to them is such a religion that I'm not entirely sure it starts in the factory. But I do know that the Changs set up the IAG tool works as a separate facility whose overhead is a fixed cost across all the product lines. This means that when any company's designer wants to employ a new part, there's no disincentive to specifying a new one. Making the special tooling to produce it doesn't add a penny (yuan?) to a division's bottom line—and hey, you've got to keep those machinists busy.

As a driver designer, Steve Hewlett was quite chuffed about this. "If I need a different cone flare or dream up a new motor assembly, I can draw it up and walk the plans over here from my office in a few minutes. And these guys give me a prototype to play with fast. In the UK, you'd be talking about a six-month lead time on something like that."

Of all the milling, cutting, and punching machines on the shop floor, my favorite was the press that turns huge rolls of steel into huge rolls of perforated speaker grille. Think of a locomotive-sized pasta press and you're pretty much there.

Another fascinating experience was watching a crew at work on the casting molds for a new remote control. Most companies have to choose from a stock remote pattern; it was impressive to see someone actually making one—or should I say, making the part that would make one?

After the tool-and-die works, we tromped through several facilities that make the component parts that later get stuffed into finished products: PCBs, control knobs, chassis, faceplates, stamped covers, molded shells, and drivers, drivers, drivers—more than 600 models.

There was quite a mix of high and low tech. We watched crucibles of molten aluminum being cast into speaker baskets—and at 700º Fahrenheit, that's impressive—and watched guys feeding sheets of fiber into vats of pulp slurry to make paper speaker cones. "We've even discovered a special kind of wood here in China that makes for a far better driver," Hewlett said. "Sorry, but it's a secret."

I watched injection-molding machines the size of boxcars making huge speaker cabinets for the Wharfedale Pro line, and guys with 3' bench planes create the longest, thinnest curls of hardwood imaginable as they prepared the clinker-built underlayer of a curvilinear Wharfedale Opus 3 loudspeaker for its veneer—technology that Thomas Jefferson would have felt at home with.

I was also hypnotized by the crew that was putting piano-lacquer finishes on speakers in one of the finishing rooms. I've pulled a certain amount of lacquer myself, enough to recognize that these cats were good.

"Actually," Julian Maddock told me, "that's a pretty good insight into how the Changs operate. When we first thought of offering a lacquer finish, we were concerned that it must be absolutely of the highest quality, so we searched around for the best local company and hired them. When we were convinced that they could consistently meet our quality standards, the Changs bought the company and moved it on-site."

Actually, that's sort of how it worked with Quad, too.

Quad, of course, like Wharfedale, has roots that stretch back to the dawn of British hi-fi—in Quad's case, all the way back to 1936. However, in the late 1980s and 1990s, Quad's relentless innovation flagged under what many feel to be an acquisition that was not sympathetic to the firm's history or corporate culture. Many observers feared that IAG's purchase of Quad would be more of the same.

"Even I was concerned about that," Julian Maddock said. "I reckoned that if I was going to stick around, they'd have to convince me they were serious about re-establishing Quad as an authentic high-end company."

And?

"I'm still here."

I've wandered around and you're still here
When IAG moved Quad's manufacturing to Shenzhen, it didn't just build a new assembly line. Actually, it couldn't—some of the equipment used to make the electrostatic panels was one-of-a-kind. Like the panel-stretching machine that puts the Mylar under tension when affixing it to the strut structure—a gizmo dubbed "Mr. Stretchy" by the ladies who'd operated it in Huntingdon, England. So IAG packed it up and shipped it off.

"Of course," Steve Hewlett said, "it was never meant to travel, so it shook itself to pieces on the trip over here. The big problem in putting it back together is that it used a pneumatic control system—it was built way before digital—and that's technology that predates almost any engineers still working today. Fortunately, I studied a bit of it in school and I took tons of photos before we disassembled it, so we were able to get it up and running. Eventually."

IAG also shipped out a bunch of longtime Quad service staff from Huntingdon, folks such as Paul McConville (30+ years), Ken Bunting (30+ years), and a relative newcomer, Rob Flain (15+ years). They stayed until they were satisfied that the new plant was making Quad products as well as they themselves had always done.

IAG oversaw the upgrade to the ESL-988 from the ESL-63, as well as the introduction of the big-gun ESL-989. It also brought the new 99 series of components to fruition, including a very nifty $1049 CD player with variable line out, digital switching, and digital inputs, a sample of which I immediately requested for review. What really thrilled me was seeing on the assembly line the legendary Quad II monoblocks (now called the Quad II Classic, $1349.99/pair). "Not original spec," Julian said, "because you just can't get a lot of those parts any more—but we spent a lot of time voicing them to sound like the originals, while taking advantages of advances in parts quality." There's a matching Quad 99 preamp ($899.99), as well as a new, higher-output tube amp, the Quad II-40 ($1799.99/pair). Now there's even a brand-new tube preamp, the QC-24 ($899.99), which uses a special milspec miniature dual-triode tube soldered directly to its circuit board.

"Wow, " I said to Julian. "What's the tube life on that baby?"

"We're not sure. We've never managed to exhaust one."

And yes, there are moving-coil speakers in the Quad line these days. "Not everybody has the space for the ESLs," Julian said. "For instance, even hard-core 989 owners probably can't employ even a pair of 988s in their bedroom systems—or in the rear channels of their home cinema systems—so we needed to face the reality of the marketplace. But we also had to make sure the 11Ls were true to the Quad identity, not to mention completely differentiated from, say, our Wharfedale compact monitors."

A lot of people think they've succeeded. The UK's What Hi-Fi/Sound & Vision awarded the Quad 11L their Product of the Year award in 2002 and 2003.

You may be wondering why I'm devoting so much space to Quad when IAG makes many other marques. Partially, I suppose, it's because it was exposure to a pair of ESL-57s that sparked my love—actually, my awareness—of the High End. Also, what I saw in IAG's attention to the Quad ethos applied to its other brands as well—but I'll spare you the brand-by-brand blow-by-blow. Let the part stand for the whole.

By the time we'd made it through the Quad part of the factory, we'd been walking for close to three hours and were wearing out. But I wasn't ready to quit. "I want to see you making Vox AC-30s," I whined as the lunch siren sounded.

"Too late," Steve said. "Everyone will be at lunch for the next two hours."

Two hours? It turns out Noël Coward wasn't making it up about it being only mad dogs and Englishmen that go out in the midday sun of the tropics. Fortunately, Steve Hewlett is an Englishman, so I convinced him to tramp up another three flights of stairs to show me the Vox assembly line, if not any actual assembly.

There, I discovered my dream job.

In a little soundproofed room in the middle of the factory floor, I saw a Fender guitar and a 2x12 speaker cabinet. Remember when I said that ISO 9001 dictates constant quality control? Well, a very lucky guitarist in Shenzhen has the job of grabbing random Vox heads and combos off the assembly line and taking them into that room to play until he's convinced they meet spec.

He gets paid for it, too.

In the blue distance, the vertical offices bear their names
I guess you could say that IAG was ultimately successful in its dastardly plan to convince me that it's concerned about quality. I suppose the company could have been staging a huge charade for the benefit of me and my traveling companion, Home Theater's Mark Fleischmann. But it seems like a stretch.

Of course, IAG is taking advantage of China's vast pool of affordable labor. I'm sure that, like all companies that manufacture in the People's Republic, it's also taking advantage of a more relaxed regulatory structure. But none of that changes the fact that the IAG facility is one of the most sophisticated and quality-conscious I've seen anywhere—including some of the most forward-thinking high-end factories on the planet.

More than that, there was an energy present at IAG that made its success seem inevitable. The labor force on the factory floor ranged from the extremely unskilled to the cream of China's technical and engineering schools, but one thing remained constant: These people take pride in what they do. There was a language barrier, of course, so I don't know whether that pride was in moving China forward or in the products they were making, but I do know pride and determination when I see it. Boy, did I witness it in Shenzhen.

I'm going to start learning Chinese. It's going to come in handy if I intend to continue writing about high-end audio.

 

[Lemarchand]

Από αντιγραφή καλά τα πάνε.Sonus Faber Concerto, καμπίνα από μοντέλο του '95 η οποία παρέμεινε και στα μοντέλα '00 όπως τα άνωθι όπου ονομάστηκε Concerto Home με άλλα μεγάφωνα και magnetically shielded.Δεν είναι λίγο προκλητική η αντιγραφή ή εγώ είμαι παράξενος?!?

Από ήχο δεν τα έχω ακούσει, δεν γνωρίζω, δεν απαντώ..

 

[Κώστας Φ.]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Τα reviews πάντως είναι όλα πολύ καλά (δείτε και το τελευταίο The Absolute Sound). Πιστεύω πως τo ηχείο θα "παίζει".

Για το θέμα της καμπίνας, είτε έχουν πάρει, με κάποιο τρόπο, τα δικαιώματα από τη Sonus Faber είτε απλά το έχουν αντιγράψει. Στη δεύτερη περίπτωση θα πρέπει η Sonus Faber να κινηθεί ανάλογα, διαφορετικά θα "νομιμοποιήσουν" με τη στάση τους την αντιγραφή αυτή.. Σε κάθε περίπτωση η καμπίνα είναι ένα μόνο μέρος του ηχείου. Αν δεν αξίζουν τα μεγάφωνα και το crossover, ό,τι καμπίνα και να βάλεις, καλό ηχείο δεν φτιάχνεις.

 

[Κώστας Φ.]

Απάντηση: Usher Audio Technology Be-718 Loudspeakers

Review του Usher Be-718 "Tiny Dancer" από το 6moons... Tσίμπησε το βραβείο του..

"In recent years and despite the fact that the midrange-tweeter-midrange driver configuration bears his name, Joseph D'Appolito has come to be associated with Usher Audio Technology through his numerous speaker designs for them. He is also credited with designing the crossover for the Be-718. What troubles me is Usher promoting the fact that D'Appolito's crossover designs are then sent to yet another designer (Danny Ritchie of GR Research, a US loudspeaker manufacturer) who upgrades certain filter parts to 'better' and almost certainly more costly components. I'm not certain of the logic here. D'Appolito has been around the block a few times. I do presume he has the ability to hear what he's designing. Why second-guess him when it comes to the parts selection for his crossovers? He must be as aware of the existence of boutique parts as the next guy and he's certainly in a great position to assess their worth. As I discovered in my review of the Usher CP-6381, he's also a pretty good cook. Why his dish would then be subjected to a second chef for ingredient changes is a question that just vexes me.


These improved ingredients are said to include high-purity oxygen-free copper air core inductors, Mills resistors, Sonicaps, Erse poly caps and Gen.2 Sonicaps. If it could be demonstrated to me that Ritchie affects some very real improvements to the speakers' performance, I'd feel a lot better. As it is, I have to wonder whether all this isn't about marketing and little else - a way to boost the price of the speakers with no questions asked. At $2,795, the Be-718 is fairly pricey for a smaller two-way speaker from Taiwan. As I look around other products also coming from China, I'm starting so see some awfully pricey stuff arrive on these shores. The big advantage of Chinese manufacturing cost is being either squandered by unnecessarily added bling or pocketed by greedy manufacturers and distributors. On one hand, this is good news for our domestic makers. If the Chinese want to squander their cheap labor advantage, why argue? But I also see a vaporizing of the consumer's ability to buy products of extreme value as should be the case. While it's true that for the Be-718, Usher is using the best drivers in their arsenal, I have to wonder whether substantially the same speaker couldn't have been brought in for less, say $500 less or some figure substantial to any buyer in this class.

...

Though it appears to be the same mid/woofer as used in other Usher speakers, the Be-718 uses Usher's best 7-inch paper cone driver called the 8948A. Of course the Be-718 also uses the top-shelf Beryllium dome tweeter found in their more expensive Dancer Series speakers. Be is the symbol for Beryllium, an extremely strong (yet brittle) and lightweight metal typically used in alloys as hardening agent. Beryllium is said to have one-third the mass of aluminum and can be fabricated into a much thinner membrane. Throw in a higher resistance to deformation and what you get is an extremely thin tweeter dome of much lower mass and greater strength than other tweeter materials.


As noted, the Be-718 (or Tiny Dancer as it's called) is a two-way utilizing the 1.25-inch Beryllium tweeter. Usher specifies a sensitivity of 87dB, a nominal impedance of 8 ohms and a frequency response of 42Hz to 35kHz with an F3 of 42Hz. They suggest a power handling of 200 watts for this 17.2 lbs monitor which stands 15 inches tall by 10 inches wide by 16 inches deep at the bottom and 12 inches deep at the speaker's top (add another two inches for binding post clearance). Crossover frequency is specified at 2.06kHz.


In terms of build and finish, the front-ported Be-718 is executed superbly. Their level of finish exceeds that of my old JMlabs Mini Utopias which sold for twice the price. The connective hardware is first-class though no provided jumpers mean your own jumpers or mandatory biwiring. The high-gloss black paint job is admirably done and one needs only to run one's fingers over the luxuriously satin-finished cherry cheeks to fully appreciate the artful finishing job. These Tiny Dancers are examples of the type of speakers that photos don't do justice. They get my highest marks.


Lastly, they are said to be internally wired with JPS Labs Alumiloy - as is my entire system so that's one extravagance on which I'll give Usher a pass. When placed on stands, the Tiny Dancers aren't all that tiny really. For stand-mounted speakers, they're quite substantial in fact. I like that. These aren't toys and they don't look like toys.

...

Conclusion

While I still have some reservations with regard to the way they're marketed, the Be-718's proof is in the listening and it's a stellar performer by almost any measure. Fed by an adequately powerful amplifier, be it tubes or solid-state, these Tiny Dancers are terrific performers combining a surprising and class-leading quality and quantity of bass brawn with excellent dynamics, a beautifully articulate and expressive mid-band and an honest yet fatigue-free treble. While the market is full of well-designed speakers that seem to cross a lot of 't's and dot a lot of 'i's, in my own experience most of these designed-by-numbers speakers sound great but fail to involve the listener and seldom become the object of the listener's affection as I predict these speakers will. I find these Ushers exceptionally endearing and involving, which is by far their most important characteristic. If I were in the market for a stand mount these would be my first choice because, in this price class, I think a speaker that hits all its marks is difficult enough to find but one that is as engaging to listen to as the Usher Be-718 comes along only once in a blue moon."


Full Review: 6moons.com